“Why are we here,” I follow Destiny in stretching.

“We’re going to make you a real bad ass,” she laughs.

“No seriously, you’ve got me out in the middle of nowhere looking like I’m about to run a triathlon.”

“Die Hand Die Verletzt,” she says with a smile, popping the car trunk.

“I’m not sure what that means,” I follow her to the car.

“It’s German and translates to the hand that wounds,” she pulls me in closer before I can question her German skills.

“Woah,” I get a look in the trunk and see a wide range of weapons. “What is all this.”

“You’re going to have to learn how to fight eventually. Usually you’d start with some basic sparring. But we’re going to kick you right up to weapons. So, what calls out to you?”

Long swords, short swords, broad swords, thin swords, maces, axes of all sizes and even a few hand guns. Something small will probably work best for me. I’m not strong enough to swing a big axe in a long battle. Wait, why is she training me to fight? What does she have planned? Maybe a gun would work, versatile and guaranteed killing power, but I’ve never fired a gun before, or even held one.

“Don’t think too hard, pick whatever calls to you,” she interrupts my train of thought.

“I like these,” I lift a pair of large curved knives with blue hued metal and black wooded handles.

“Hachoir de guerre,” she nods with approval. “We’re getting a lesson in languages today. These are French made, a combination of axe and knife. Meaning if you can master these, you can pretty easily transition to daggers, swords or axes.”

“You really know a ton about different weapons, and languages. How long have you really been alive because 30 doesn’t seem so believable anymore.”

“30, for real,” she smiles. “But I’ll say this, when you’ve barely had to sleep for a few years you find yourself with a lot of extra free time. Study languages, history. I know a lot, but I’m not an expert on any of it. I can tell you how to use each of these weapons, but I’m not an expert with any of them. I just went through a phase.”

“Wait, vampires don’t have to sleep? Turn me right now,” I joke.

She puts a finger on my neck and gently caresses it, “that could be arranged,” she bares her fangs playfully.

“I don’t know if I’m creeped out or aroused.”

“Why not both,” she gently pushes me away.

“I didn’t even mean to say that out loud.”

“Yeah, whatever,” she jokes. “Let’s teach you to fight.”

“What’s the first step.”

“Take up a position you think you should take.”

I think for a moment and take up a pose, similar to one of my Elder Scrolls characters who would wield double daggers or axes. Slightly bent knees and blades the same height as my head. Destiny only laughs and corrects my posture. She instructs me to take a few swings. It takes a moment before I get used to the weight in my hands, they don’t look heavy but the handles are weighted. Maybe there’s some kind of heavy metal inside that keeps the weight off the blades. I wonder what the purpose for that is.

“Alright, are you going to teach me some cool moves now?”

“Nope,” she reaches into the backseat of the car and pulls out a book. “Teach yourself.”

“Wait, I thought you were going to teach me,” I catch the book.

“I said I was good at a bunch of stuff and mastered none. I don’t know how to use those things. I just remember proper formation from the books,” she laughs as if she’s told the funniest joke ever.

“Wow, you brought me out here to Karate Kid me, then just make read a book?”

“Nope, we’re going to run too.”

“What?”

“You need to get your cardio up, and your strength. But we’ll work on that later.”

Gym class, the only class I skipped in school. Now I’m out here running after a vampire before the sun is all the way up in the sky. There’s still dew on the ground for heaven’s sake. Is this what love is? Because I wouldn’t do this for anyone else. At least she’s letting me keep up and not leaving me in the dust. Why am I always chasing after this woman? One day I’m going to catch her.